365 Pink Feather Boas All in a Row - Day 79 : I Like Technology But I Am Not Going to Marry It

I went grocery shopping today.


No, that's not the point of this blog entry but it is does lead to a sort of a Grumpy Old Men rant against technology. I am usually a massive fan of technology - well unless it doesn't that is and then I am damn near ropable and apt to start railing against every last megabyte of the damn device! - and take to new ways to do things with alacrity. Today however my fondness for the new got me into trouble when I used one of the new fan-dangled self-scanning devices so beloved of retailers because it allows them to shed staff like a politician dispenses with morals and ethics on their climb to power.

Usually these devices work well, and I am out of the supermarket in no time flat. But today the scanning device I used didn't like how I placed things in bags, queried why I had put x or y product into the bag at all, disputed that I'd even scanned it, helpfully got me to pay twice for something because of the confusion over whether I had scanned it at all the first time (I had) and generally made my checkout experience a living hell.

Naturally being the good ex-practising Christian that I am - though I do still believe in God - I naturally saw this as divine judgement on me for buying 4 more Smurfs I didn't really needed but wanted  - yes there is no rhyme of reason or logicality for a collector of any object - at the nearby Glebe Markets since usually technology and supermarkets and I get on swimmingly well.


Not today alas, but thankfully the afternoon itself was relaxing and consisted of some blogging, a nap, reading Saturday's paper a little, and then dinner out with my friend Fahmi and 6 others (my dentist, Andrew and his boyfriend, David / their friends Justin and Martin / Fahmi's work colleague Deb, who's a delight, and her husband, Ron) at a great Mexican restaurant called Pepino's in Gladesville (which I dare not truly like as every time I really like somewhere, it usually closes shortly thereafter... thank you Posh Spice!).